Modular Framework for Verdict News Platform

I worked on a team to redesign Verdict’s news platform, a network of over 20 websites covering global topics in technology, business, and innovation. We aimed to create a consistent, efficient news service that attracts a wide audience, with a focus on bringing in senior leaders and influencers within each industry.

To support fast development and improve usability for the editorial team, we built a modular framework based on interchangeable components. This framework allowed us to quickly adapt features and layouts across sites, achieving consistent design and efficient content delivery while also supporting SEO and mobile optimisation for reaching our audience.

We aligned templates across the network to ensure a unified look but identified areas where bespoke templates or unique features were needed. This approach balanced consistency with flexibility, helping us quickly go live with new features while also supporting community-building tools like surveys, newsletters, and webinars.

Process

Our design process began with research to understand both user and client needs, especially focusing on how and where users interact with Verdict products. We seek to bring together data from various sources, like websites, newsletters, and events, to gain a clear view of user journeys, set opportunities and also identify areas for improvement.

Design Phase: Modular Framework and Optimisation

• Modular Framework: built a system of adaptable components for consistent user experience across sites, promoting flexibility and scalability.
• WordPress Multisite: leveraged a multisite setup for rapid deployment, allowing component reuse across various propositions.
• Responsive Design & SEO: focused on optimising design for responsiveness and SEO, which improved website speed and increased user engagement.
• MVP Approach: followed a MVP model, deploying features quickly and refining UX through iterative updates based on user data.

Data visibility was key to this project, as we integrated data visualisation tools wherever possible to support user needs and highlight our content's depth. Every product decision was made to ensure a high commercial reputation and to position Verdict competitively.

Covid Dashboard

In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Marketing department requested that we develop content to address vaccination topics and attract more readers to PharmaceuticalTechnology.com for pandemic information. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, we launched the project remotely over Zoom, where the UX and Product Design team gathered input from journalists and directors to set guidelines for covering COVID-19.

Our goals included countering misinformation about vaccines and the pharmaceutical industry, creating real-time infographics using GlobalData technology, and offering free, public COVID-19 coverage to increase accessibility. We also aimed to address common questions on vaccine types and timelines.

To shape the dashboard, we conducted a survey to understand users’ views on COVID-19, their information sources, and vaccine preferences. Additionally, we collaborated with GlobalData API developers to integrate data and graphs into the dashboard and implemented an interactive filter so users could select topics of interest.